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After the jury verdict, Mata agreed to plead no contest to five additional counts involving two other accusers — bringing his confirmed victim count to four girls ranging from ages 8 to 11. He will serve concurrent 10-year sentences for each of the additional charges.

In July 2011, an 11-year-old told authorities he began fondling her after a night of watching movies with her and her parents.

After the most recent victim came forward, two other girls said they, too, had been molested in 2004 and 2005.

“The only time he wasn't offending was when he was locked up,” prosecutor Meredith Chacon said.

Mata, whose long goatee and button-up shirt partly obscured gang tattoos and the word “hate” scrolled across his neck, showed no emotion as the father of one victim told him they eventually would forgive him.

Texas legislators currently are considering a bill that would allow jurors to hear from a defendant's other accusers during the first phase of a child molestation trial. Many states already allow such testimony, according to the Texas District and County Attorneys Association.